Amarra Ghani of UNC-Asheville recently received North Carolina Campus Compact’s Community Impact Student Award. Amarra was one of nineteen college students across the state who received the award for making significant, innovative contributions to their campus’ efforts to address local community needs. Awardees also received a Certificate of Appreciation from Gov. Beverly Perdue. She was recognized at the 2011 North Carolina Campus Compact Tenth Year Anniversary Student Conference on November 12th, 2011.

Amarra is the founder and president of UNCA’s Muslim Student Association (MSA). Amarra's focus has been to raise awareness about the Muslim faith, and to connect with other groups on campus to promote interfaith dialogue. Additionally, through MSA and on her own, Amarra has been active in serving the community, both locally and internationally. Through her leadership, students from different organizations, including Jewish and Christian groups, are working together on food security efforts. These efforts included a bake sale to raise money for food for Somalia (which raised over $600), and working with Warren Wilson College’s interfaith garden initiative to donate produce to local food banks. Amarra also has led advocacy efforts on various issues, such as MSA’s “Scarves for Solidarity” event opposing France’s recent burqa/niqab ban, and a candlelight vigil for Egypt in the midst of last February’s revolution. Currently, Amarra is a Safe Schools for All intern, working to combat bullying and helping lead a “no-name calling” campaign.

The awards were presented at the 19th NC Campus Compact Student Conference that brought together over 200 college students and guests representing 26 North Carolina higher education institutions on Nov. 12 at Wake Forest University. The Compact’s Executive Director, Dr. Lisa Keyne, presented the awards with Mr. John Barnhill, founding Director of NC Campus Compact and current Assistant Vice President for University Advancement at Elon University.

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